


MMPL

by ACFox



Category: RWBY, Super Smash Brothers
Genre: (this is basically RWBY), F/M, M/M, Non-Graphic Violence, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, and a GUN, cause why the fuck not, peach's umbrella is also a sword
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-04
Updated: 2017-09-09
Packaged: 2018-12-23 16:03:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11993157
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ACFox/pseuds/ACFox
Summary: The characters in Smash bros as they take on Beacon academy.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> so this is really more of a prologue, and the actually story will start in the next chapter 
> 
> I'm sorry I suck at starting stories but from now on the chapters should be longer

Luigi looked outside into the clouds as he and Mario flew their way to Beacon Academy. He had always had a fear of flying, and knowing what was at the end of their destination wasn't helping with his rising anxiety. His brother, on the other hand, looked to be completely at ease. Luigi had always envied his brother's confidence. It seemed that Mario never faltered no matter what task he had to take. He had been dreaming of this moment for as long as he could remember, and why wouldn't he? He was the top prospect back in the Mushroom Kingdom for as long as Luigi could remember, while he was just a quiet after thought. Nevertheless, Luigi stuck by his older brother's side no matter where he went, and Beacon Academy was no different.

There were quite a few other students on the plane with them, and it was clear the they were from all sorts of different places. Luigi felt another pang of insecurity as he looked around at the varying species surrounding him. There were other humans like himself, but accompanying them were all sorts of animals and Pokemon, and he knew he would never measure up to the likes of the people riding the plane.

The ride up to Beacon was relatively short, and soon enough they found themselves descending back onto the ground. Once the plane had come to a complete stop, Luigi snatched his backpack and threw it over his shoulder. He had packed nearly everything he could fit inside, while Mario had just packed the bare necessities. He followed his brother out and into the fresh air and was met with a complete view of the school. It was beautiful with lush green grass and tall healthy trees, nothing back at home could compare. It was much bigger than he had expected it to be, and the school its self looked as if it were a castle. 

Luigi turned to see his brother and could practically feel the excitement radiating off of him. Mario had been dreaming to go to Beacon for as long as Luigi could remember, and the fact that he had actually made it was amazing, so he gave his brother the time to take it all in.

“Okay, Bro,” he said after awhile. “What should we do now? I don't think any actual training starts until tomorrow.” 

The thought of training with all of the skilled students here was quite unnerving. Of course he had trained with Mario his whole life, but his brother always went easy on him. Luigi knew that wouldn't be the case here.

“You wanna take a look around the campus?” His brother suggested.

His shoulder was already starting to hurt from the weight of his backpack, and flying in itself was taxing enough, but he knew how much this all meant for his brother, so he nodded his head.

Mario sent him a knowing smirk as he took the backpack off his younger brother's shoulders and swapped it with his own. Luigi felt a wave of relief as his brother's pack weighed practically nothing. He muttered a quick “Thanks,” and the two set off.

The academy was truly beautiful, the sight of it made some of Luigi's worries go away. Some. He felt his anxiety rising back up any time he saw another student, even though he was sure they weren't acknowledging him at all. Every time someone passed by their eyes were locked on Mario. Luigi knew that his older brother was very popular back at the Mushroom Kingdom, but he had no idea that people knew of him all over. Either his brother was oblivious to the gawking or he simply didn't care, he would send someone the occasional smile, but other than that he payed them no mind. 

It was surreal to think that this would be their home for the next 4 years. As far as places to live went, Beacon wasn't so bad. It was the people here that had Luigi worried. Everyone he saw looked so strong, it was hard to find another friendly face. He found himself subconsciously walking closer to Mario.

The pair made their way back toward the center of the campus and found that a crowd of people were heading into the school. The brothers sent each other a quick glance then followed the others inside. 

The room was packed full of students, and there was a large stage in the front. It seemed as if everyone was waiting for something to happen.

“Wow,” Luigi said as he looked around. “There's a whole lot of people in here huh, Bro?”

No response.

“Bro?” He turned to his brother to see the other staring off into the distance. “Hey, are you listening?”

Mario let out a “Mmhmm,” as he started wading off into the crowd.

“Wait!” Luigi exclaimed and he started following his brother through the people.

Mario seemed to be entranced as he made his way across the room, and Luigi could see why. There was a gorgeous girl standing off in the corner. She was wearing a pink dress that complimented her pale skin while showing off her small frame. Her long blonde hair flowed down her back with a parasol balancing across her left shoulder that matched her dress perfectly.

“Oh, hello.” She spoke politely as she turned to face Mario. Her bright blue eyes seemed to be locked on his brother, as they never made their way over to him. “You're Mario, aren't you?” 

A blush made it's way onto Mario's face as he nodded. 

The girl finally turned toward Luigi, and he found himself standing up straighter. 

“That means you're Luigi then.” She smiled sweetly.

“Uh,” he stuttered. “Yeah that's me.”

Her eyes darted back to Mario, and Luigi let out a breath he didn't know he was holding in.

“I'm Peach.”

It looked as if a grin was stuck onto his brother's face, but then it faltered. 

“Wait, Peach? As in Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom Peach?” He questioned, and Luigi took another hard glance at the girl as the realization dawned on him.

Peach looked back and forward, as if checking to see if anyone heard him. “Yes,” she replied quietly. “But I'd really prefer it if that stays between us.”

“Why?” Luigi blurted before his brain could catch up. Mario shot him a glare. 

The princess looked at him with a fiery gaze. “I made it here because of the work I put into my training. I didn't get any special treatment before, and I don't want it now.” She responded firmly.

“No,” Luigi said quickly. “I meant why would you even want to be a huntress?” 

The blonde looked at the two brothers, before letting out a sigh. “I've always thought that I should be able to defend both myself and the kingdom. Once I started training I discovered how much I enjoyed it. Obviously it wasn't my parents first choice for me, and if something were to happen to them I would be forced to head back.” She settled her eyes on Mario, and a soft smile spread across her face. “But this has always been my dream. I've never been able to train with the people age I'm really excited for what the next four years has to bring.”

Luigi looked between the two of them, and it seemed like they had forgotten they were in a room full of other people. It made him feel a bit uncomfortable, so when a man and a woman started walking up onto the stage he was relived.

The man tapped on the microphone while the woman stood behind him. A hush fell over the room as everyone's attention went to the pair on the stage. 

“I'll keep this brief.” The man proclaimed. “You have traveled here today in search of knowledge. To hone your craft and acquire new skills, and when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But, I look among you and all I see is wasted energy in need of direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step.” He turned swiftly, and exited the stage. 

The woman stepped forward. “You will gather in the ballroom tonight. Tomorrow your initiation will begin. Be ready.” She looked around the room for a moment. “You are dismissed.” She finished and walked off of the stage and headed after the man.

The three students look at each other questionably, and Luigi felt even more nervous than he had before. 

“Well,” Peach broke the silence. “He seemed...” She paused. “Nice?”

Mario smirked at her, then turned and started walking out of the auditorium with the other students with Peach following close behind him. Luigi had to jog a bit to catch up to them. The last thing he wanted was to get separated from his brother.

~*~

 

That night all of the students found themselves in the ballroom. There were sleeping bags scattered all around the floor with some of them already fast asleep, one of those being Peach, while those who were still awake were surrounded by the buzz of anticipation and excitement. Luigi noticed that he seemed to be much more nervous than everyone else. Then again, they were all secure in their abilities, and one of the most confident of them all was sitting beside him.

The brothers had placed themselves in a far corner of the room. They sat with their backs leaning against the wall as they watched the others mill about. Luigi studied his brother, and seeing how genuinely happy he was made him sure he made the right choice by joining him, even though he was scared for the days to come.

Mario nudged his brother with his elbow, who then turned to face him. “You know you're gonna be great tomorrow, right?” He asked as if he could sense his brother's fear. Luigi scoffed in response causing the older to frown. “I'm serious.” He assured.

The younger started playing with his fingers, giving him an excuse to not look at Mario in the eyes. “You're gonna do great, you always do.” He muttered. “But I'm just hoping I'll be able to scrape by.” 

“Don't doubt yourself,” Mario said softly. “I'm gonna be right beside you the whole time like I always have been, you have nothing to worry about.” 

Luigi felt a smile creeping up onto his face. “Thanks, bro.” 

His brother smiled back at him in response, and Luigi felt somewhat calmer about the days to come. The pair fell into a comfortable silence as they returned to watch all the students throughout the ballroom. The amount of variety in the people around them was amazing. He saw a group gathered in the middle of the room with a fox, bird, and wolf. He had heard about people like that, but had never actually seen them himself. There were some pokemon on their left. Luigi had seen a few of them before, but to see so many of them together was incredible. 

“We should probably get some sleep.” Mario voiced. 

Luigi could have kept watching all of the interesting people flowing throughout the room all night, but his brother, as usual, was right. The first day of training was looming ahead of them, and Luigi knew that once he woke up the rest of his life would begin. It was a pretty terrifying thought, so he wanted to stay up as late as he could just to delay the inevitable, but not having any rest would make tomorrow worse than it was already going to be, so he nodded his head in response and climbed into his sleeping bag. 

“Night, bro.”

“Night.”


	2. Chapter 2

“Hey, Ness?”

“Yeah, Lucas?”

“Do you think we'll end up on the same team together?” Lucas asked his friend as they sat in the cafeteria the following day. “I mean, we've trained together our whole life, so they've gotta pair us up, right?” 

Ness turned to the other boy. Before he could let out a word, the blonde continued. “We need to come up with a foolproof plan to make sure we don't get separated. Do you even know how they choose the teams?”

“Not really-” He was interrupted once again, this time from a computerized voice ringing throughout the large room. 

“First year students,” It announced. “You have thirty minutes to report to Beacon Cliff. I repeat, you have thirty minutes to report to Beacon Cliff.”

The pair simultaneously got up from their spots at the table. They started making their way to the locker room, so they could get ready to start the first real day at Beacon.

“What if it's completely out of our hands?” Lucas continued as he walked. “What if they pull our names out of a hat? Ness, I don't want them to pull names out of a hat. I could get paired up with a bunch of bullies, and you know that once we get assigned to our teams we're stuck for four years with them.”

They finished their short walk from the cafeteria and made their way into the locker room.

“Lucas-”

“Oh my god, Ness. What if we get put on separate teams and become rivals? I don't wanna fight against you, I want to fight with you. I'm gonna throw up-” 

“Lucas!” Ness exclaimed as he grabbed onto his friend's shoulders.

“What?”

“I don't know how they're going to pick teams, but I do know that if we're meant to be together, we'll be together.” The other boy felt his cheeks flush at his friend's words, but remained quiet. “There's no reason to worry about things like this.”

Lucas let out a sigh. “You're right.”

Ness flashed him a reassuring smile as he pulled out his bat from his locker. He threw it easily onto his shoulder, then waited for the other boy to gather his things as well. The two closed their lockers and started making their way outside when they noticed a few people gathering together. Ness turned and headed that direction instead, with Lucas scurrying after him. 

“Woah.” Ness muttered to his friend. “Is that-”

The blonde surged forward to get a better look. Then nodded his head in assurance. Ness let out an excited laugh and let his curiosities get the best of him as he started shooting off questions.

~*~

Luigi made his way into the locker room. He had hardly gotten any sleep the night before and was feeling incredibly jittery. Not a good way to start his day. 

He took a survey of all that was around him. Everyone was pulling out their weapons and Luigi felt extremely bare without one. He had always been clumsy, and never could get the hang of any weapons people tried to make him use. Without his fire powers there was no way he could have made it this far, he was sure of it. 

Mario had fire powers as well. Not only that, he also had much better control of them. Luigi could shoot fireballs, but that was as far as his abilities went. The magic had always come easily to Mario, so he struggled to understand Luigi's troubles with it. He had tried working with his younger brother many times, but it seemed like this was just another addition to the long list of things he was superior at.

Mario pulled his weapon out of his locker. It was a large hammer that had been passed down from their father. Using the hammer was like second nature to him, and Luigi would be lying if he said he wasn't jealous that his brother had found a weapon so easily while he still hadn't found one. 

The locker slammed shut beside him, and when Luigi looked to his brother he saw the spark of life inside his eyes that was always present before their training. 

He leaned his hammer onto his shoulder as he asked, “You ready?” 

Luigi gulped as he nodded his head, unable to find any words. The pair started making their way outside when he noticed a small circle gathering in the corner of the room. He nudged his brother, causing him to stop. They looked at each other and wordlessly decided to check it out. 

There appeared to be six students surrounding a small creature wearing a long cape, some impressive looking armor, and a mask that covered his entire face, leaving bright yellow eyes as all you could see. The people swarming him were shooting off questions one by one, and though it was hard to tell, it didn't seem like the attention was fazing him. Luigi hadn't even heard him say a word in response.

“That's Meta Knight.” Mario explained beside him.

“Who?”

“Meta Knight,” He repeated. “He's the pride of Dreamland. Graduated with some of the best grades I've ever heard of, won the SMASH tournament four years in a row. The guy's super impressive.”

Luigi hummed in response as he turned his attention back to the man in question. He still hadn't heard a word out of him, and the students around him seemed to be packed full of energy. There was a pink little ball that sort of resembled Meta Knight, what looked to be a set of boy-girl twins wearing large winter coats, a small blonde boy with a brunette wearing a hat close beside him, and a monkey that was literally jumping up and down with excitement.

Mario was looking at the group fondly, and Luigi found himself suddenly grateful that while his brother was pretty well known, nothing like this had happened to him.

It was then that the woman from the stage yesterday's voice echoed throughout the room. 

“All first year students please report to Beacon Cliff immediately.”

Luigi felt his blood run cold, and had the sudden urge to go lock himself in a locker just so he wouldn't have to actually go through with this. His brother's hand landed on his shoulder and gave him a reassuring squeeze. The younger let out a sigh, and with that, he and all other first year students made their way out of the locker room to start the next four years of their lives. 

~*~ 

All of the students stood in a line at the edge of the cliff, with a view of the forest that lay beneath them. Luigi was trying to get his hands to stop shaking, but found it was no use. There were over twenty students, and while some of them also appeared to have jitters, most of them seemed confident. He noticed Meta Knight was the farthest person from him standing on the left side of the cliff, and the knight was the picture of confidence. Peach was stood in the middle of the line with her hair thrown up into a ponytail and her umbrella leaning across her shoulder. She threw a smile and a quick wave over to Mario, who was stood to his left. His brother looked excited if anything, and Luigi wished that his brother could share some of the ease that he found so easily. The man and the woman from yesterday were placed in front of them, showing no emotions whatsoever.

“For years you have trained to become warriors.” The man started. “And today your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest.”

The woman stepped forward. “Now, I'm sure you've heard rumors about the assignment of teams. Allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates. Today.”

“These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time at Beacon.” The man continued. “So it is within your best interest to be paired with someone you can work well with. That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years.”

Students started to look quickly at the people surrounding them, and Luigi turned to look at his brother who was already looking back at him. They gave each other a slight nod.

“After you have partnered up, you will make your way to the northern end of the forest.” The man instructed. “You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path, or you will die. You will be monitored and graded for the duration of your initiation. But, our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several gems. Each pair must choose one, and return to the top of the cliff. We will regard that item, as well as your standing, and grade you appropriately. Are there any questions?” 

Silence.

“Good. Now, take your positions.”

Luigi watched as one by one, each student was propelled off of the cliff into the air. Of course, they chose to go left to right, so he would be the last to go. His anxieties were starting to become overwhelming. He had gone over landing strategies a few times in training, but that had always been from around ten feet up into the air. The students were being launched very far from very high up. He looked to his brother. Mario winked at him as he was sent flying into the air, with Luigi following seconds behind. He couldn't help but let out a shriek as soon as his feet left the ground. This was worse than he thought it was going to be, if that was even possible. 

The forest below him was passing by quickly, and getting closer and closer as he continued to fall. As terrified as he was, he knew he needed to focus on how to land or he would actually die. He had lost track of all the other students, which was decidedly not good. How was Mario going to help him if they were separated? The ground was closing in on him, and he decided that breaking his fall through the trees would be his best bet. He found the softest looking tree in sight and hoped it would be enough to save him. 

The tree was tall, which was probably a plus in the long run, but getting hit repeatably by leaves and branches wasn't exactly his idea of fun. He tried to grab onto a branch but they kept slipping from his grasp and before he knew it he was colliding with the ground, landing on his shoulder and tumbling through the woods for a few feet before he finally rolled to a stop. 

He lay face down in the tall grass for quite sometime feeling dizzy and disoriented, when the searing pain from his shoulder caught up to him. He turned to lay on his back and clutched the injured arm using the hand from his good one. He felt like it was broken, out of socket at the least, but he was alive, so he counted this as somewhat of a win. His eyes stayed locked on the sky as the minutes passed by. Soon enough he remembered the position he was in and sat up quickly. 

He was at Beacon. It was his first day of training. He just got launched through the air into a highly dangerous area. He needed to find Mario, and quick. 

It was a bit of a struggle to stand, but his fear of the monsters that were lurking around him motivated him. He went as fast as he could while surveying the woods around him, trying to find a glimpse of a red hat. After awhile of trekking through the wilderness he paused to catch his breath. Luigi continued to look for his brother, or anyone at this point. He leaned his back against a tree and tried not to focus on the rising pain in his shoulder. Suddenly, the silence of the forest was broken by the sound of heavy breathing behind him.

His heart was racing as he turned slowly, and was greeted by the sight of a huge grimm.

“Oh shit!”

His feet started running before his mind had a chance to catch up, and the pain he had been feeling earlier was temporarily forgotten. The thought of checking on the monster that was chasing him hadn't occurred to him through all the fear that was coursing through his body. 

He stumbled slightly and found himself colliding with the ground roughly. As he rolled onto his back he saw that the huge creature wasn't far behind him. 

“Shit, shit, shit,” he muttered repeatably to himself as he started firing fireballs at the grimm, causing it to slow down, but not stop completely. He tried to stand back up again, but his injured shoulder was hindering his efforts. Luigi had resigned himself to the fact that he probably wasn't going to make it out alive, as his attempts to stop the monster were to no use. It crept closer and Luigi found that he wasn't able to catch his breath. He watched hopelessly as the creature closed in on him, and felt a rush of sadness that this would probably ruin his brother's time here at Beacon. 

It raised it's large arm up into the sky as as claws unsheathed their way from it's hands. His heart stopped as the claws started falling towards him, when suddenly a large crescent beam of light soared from the woods and blasted it's way through the grimm, splitting it in half in one fell swoop and leaving a large crater where the beast previously stood.

Luigi started gasping for air as soon as he was able to breath air back into his lungs. He stared in the direction from which the attack came from, and after waiting for quite sometime he saw Meta Knight emerge from the forest. The knight's yellow eyes locked onto the blue ones staring back at him, and with that, Luigi had found his partner for the next four years.

“Thank you.” He breathed out.

“No problem.” The knight responded as he held out a hand, which Luigi gratefully accepted. He seemed to be assessing his new found partner as he fell silent for a bit before asking, “Are you hurt?”

Luigi felt a blush of embarrassment rise onto his cheeks. “A little.” He answered while indicating to his shoulder. 

Meta Knight was quiet once again, before he took the bottom of his cape and tore a piece of it off. Luigi looked at him questionably as the other boy started wrapping the cloth around his injured shoulder, creating a make-shift sling. 

Luigi looked at Meta Knight in awe, and felt both proud to have him as a partner and insecure knowing that he was no where near as skilled as him. He hoped that his teammate didn't resent having him as a partner for the next four years, but he couldn't blame him if he was.

“Um,” he stuttered out through his nervousness. “Thank you, really.” 

The knight waved him off, and Luigi was willing the mask on his face to disappear just so he could judge whether or not he was upset with him. He was praying that wasn't the case, while kicking himself for getting hurt and losing the respect of his teammate before they even got to know each other.

“We should get going.” Meta Knight declared. Luigi nodded along wordlessly, not feeling up to speaking anymore. He felt yellow eyes baring into him but refused to lift his own eyes up from the ground. Soon enough he felt a hand placed onto his unharmed shoulder, causing him to look up. 

“Are you going to be able to make it to the temple?” 

His heart sank, of course Meta Knight was doubting him, why wouldn't he? “Yeah,” he replied. 

He received a nod and a reassuring squeeze as a response, and with that the knight turned and started leading the way to their destination. 

~*~

Mario landed with a roll and smoothly transitioned to his feet as he began running through the woods. He was fueled with adrenaline and was overjoyed to finally be able to begin his training at Beacon. Soon after his mind caught up with him and he slowed. Luigi. He was launched right after him, and judging from the girlish scream he heard his brother was not prepared. He slowed to a complete stop and looked all around him in search for any signs of him, but trying to find Luigi in a green filled forest was not an easy task. He puffed out a sigh and began jogging once again. Everyone had to get to the back of the forest to pick up their gem, so that would be his best chance at finding his brother. 

His high spirits had been brought down somewhat from the knowledge that Luigi was out in the wilderness with monsters surrounding them, and he wasn't there to protect him. He would never be able to forgive himself if something were to happen to his little brother. Mario was making good progress, and had a gut feeling he was nearing the temple. He made sure to keep an eye out for Luigi as he continued making his way through the woods.

He came to a halt when he heard the crunch of a stick breaking behind him. Fire started to rise up in his palm as he cautiously turned to see who or what was behind him. He was greeted by the sight of a large grimm growling back at him. He kept his stance firm as the monster began charging it's way towards him. Mario launched three spouts of fire onto the beast, causing it to let out a cry of pain. While the grimm was distracted, Mario pulled out his hammer and started running toward the large creature. He blasted a few more spouts of fire onto the grimm and raised his hammer fully intending to bash the monster's skull. Before he could land the swing, the beast let out a whine and collapsed lifelessly to the ground.

Mario stood in shock for a few moments before raising his eyes up and being greeted with the sight of Peach. She was perched up on the grimm's back with a foot balanced on it's head. The princess effortlessly pulled her sword from it's place in the back of the creature's skull, and once the weapon was released, he watched as it transformed from a blade back into the umbrella that Peach always had with her.

“Wow,” Mario whispered to himself. He pulled his eyes away from the impressive weapon and turned his attention to the girl wielding it. Peach was already looking at him, and their eyes locked onto one another. He felt a smirk rising up onto his face, and the princess smiled back at him. He stepped forward and offered his hand to the her. She gratefully accepted his help as she stepped off of the beast and back onto the solid ground. Mario decided right then and there that if he couldn't have Luigi as a partner, Peach was the next best thing. 

~*~

Lucas looked around the forest cautiously as he made his way north. He had heard what sounded like a grimm attack over to the east, and was ashamed to admit that rather than joining in the battle he had turned the other way. The sounds stopped almost as quick as they started, and ever since then he had been covered in silence. It was unnerving to say the least, e  
specially as he knew the sort of dangers that were surrounding him. Looking back, he should have followed the sounds of the fight just so he could meet up with some of the other students. Being alone in such a huge forest was daunting, and while he wanted Ness to be his partner, he would take anyone at this point just so he wouldn't have to face a grimm on his own. 

As he reached the top of a large hill he noticed the temple in the distance. It didn't look like anyone had made it there yet and he felt relief knowing that he couldn't be too far behind everyone else. Although, as Lucas started to take in his surroundings he noticed there wasn't really a safe way down from the cliff he was currently stood on, so he would have to try and find another way down. The blonde puffed out a sigh, then headed back into the woods to try and find better access to the temple. 

His heart suddenly skipped a beat as he heard the telltale growl of a grimm make it's way from deeper into the forest. His feet felt frozen into place, and while his brain was willing him to start moving again his body refused to cooperate. He took in some deep breaths in an attempt to calm himself down. After a few moments he finally began marching his way toward the sounds of the attack.   
Lucas stumbled a bit after he heard a crash and the ground beneath him began to shake. A tree must have fallen over. Another growl resounded throughout the woods, and judging from it he was getting close. As he neared the battle he heard a voice that instantly took away his fears, and he took off into a sprint. Then he saw him through the trees: Ness.

From the looks of it the other boy was in no need of help. Ness was currently up in the air shooting out a PK flash to stun the beast. Once his feet touched the ground he fired off a PK thunder and hit the monster in between it's eyes, sending it tumbling to the ground. Without missing a beat Ness pulled out his bat then flipped his way onto the head of the fallen grimm. He rose his bat up then brought it down with a loud crack, and with that the beast let out one final groan before collapsing.

Lucas stared wide-eyed at his friend, who took a deep breath before raising his attention up and toward his friend. Lucas couldn't help the smile that rose up on his face as their eyes met.

“Lucas!” Ness shouted as he hopped down from his spot on the grimm. He ran over to his friend and instantly threw his arms around him. “I'm so glad I found you.”

After standing stiff with shock, the blonde relaxed and returned the embrace. “Really?” He asked. 

Ness pulled back while keeping his hands on Lucas' shoulders. “Of course. There's no one I'd rather have be my partner for for the next four years.”

Lucas let out a sigh of relief as he felt himself smiling once again. “C'mon, I think I found the temple.” He explained as he turned and started heading back from where he came, with Ness following close behind him.

~*~

The walk toward the temple was overwhelmingly silent. Luigi couldn't find anything to say to his new partner, who was very intimidating to say the least. He still hadn't seen Mario, or anyone else for that matter. He was longing for a less frightening person to talk with. He found himself kicking a pebble along the ground for lack of a better thing to do. 

Eventually it was Meta Knight who broke the silence with a sigh before stopping completely and looking up at Luigi. “Look, I know you're probably upset that you have me as a partner but-”

“What?” Luigi exclaimed as his gaze darted up from the ground. “No, I thought you were disappointed that you got stuck with me as a partner.”

Meta Knight shook his head. “Not at all. In fact, I'm honored to have you.” 

The other boy stood stunned. “I'm sorry, do you have me confused for my brother?”

“No, I've actually seen you fight before and I think you have a lot of potential. I was excited when I saw that you were here, I rather expected your brother to be here.”

Luigi scoffed as he felt his face burning, he didn't like talking about himself so he changed the subject. “Who wouldn't you as their teammate. You're the Meta Knight.” He asked.

The knight let out a laugh. “I think that's the reason actually. People either don't want to be over shadowed, or they're too afraid of me.” 

“Huh,” the other boy huffed out. “Well feel free to over shadow me as much as you like, I'm very used to it at this point.” He smirked at the shorter.

It was then that Luigi had to do a double take, as his partner's eyes had turned from yellow to blue. He might have just imagined it however, as the blue was gone as soon as it came. Meta Knight wordlessly turned and began to make his way toward their destination once again, and Luigi didn't have the courage to ask about his eye color changing. Instead, he turned his attention forward and spotted their destination.

It wasn't really a temple, but it's ruins. The walls were left intact while the ceiling had caved in many years ago. There were broken down pillars surrounding what was left of the temple with gems of many different shapes and colors placed on them. Some gems were already gone, meaning that others had been there before them. Standing in the middle of the pillars were two boys talking animatedly to each other. One of the boys noticed them started waving.

“Meta Knight!” He called. 

Luigi turned to look at his partner, who he found was already looking back at him. The knight simply shrugged and made his way down and into the temple. The pair was greeted by the two boys once they got there.

“Hey! I'm Ness, and this is Lucas.” He gestured to the blonde standing next to him. He looked down and started kicking the dirt before saying, “I saw you in the SMASH tournament last year, I'm really excited that you're here.”

“Thank you.” Meta Knight responded curtly. Luigi didn't know the other well, but he could tell that complements made him uncomfortable. The knight pushed past the two boys and began to investigate the different gem selections. Luigi gave them an apologetic glance before going to join his partner.

“We should choose wisely.” The knight stated while studying the different gems. “Amber stands for warmth, well-being and nourishment. Amethyst, protection and intuition. The diamond, initiation, purpose and clarity.” 

“What about this one?” Luigi suggested.

“The emerald, that stands for love, compassion, and abundance.”

“And it's green.” 

Meta Knight let out a laugh, and his eyes shined blue once again. “A fine choice.” 

Luigi tried not to stare at his companion, and turned his attention back to the emerald. He picked up the small gem and placed it in his pocket. By the time he looked back up he found his partner's eyes had returned to their normal yellow hue. He considered asking about it, but before he could mention it he was interrupted by a voice shouting behind him.

“Bro!”

He turned and was greeted by Mario's arms wrapped around him. Luigi let out a nervous laugh while gently pushing his brother off of his injured shoulder.

Mario looked at him quizzically before taking note of the sling on his brother. “Oh my god, are you hurt?” He asked as he gently grabbed his younger brother's arm to inspect the severity. 

Luigi shoved him off once he noticed that the other people around them were staring. “I'm fine.”  
It was then that he noticed his brother's companion heading towards them. 

“Peach!” He exclaimed. “I guess you guys are partners then?”

The princess nodded with a smile on her face. “And Meta Knight is yours?” 

Luigi looked at his newfound friend and responded with the shake of his head. When he looked back at the princess she wore a look of approval. Before anything else could be said a screech came from the skies above them. They all instantly turned their attention upwards and were greeted with the sight of a flying grimm falling towards them. The six of them quickly ran so that they wouldn't get crushed by the falling beast. 

The grimm landed with a loud crash sending dust up into the sky and hindering their sight. When the air finally cleared Luigi was shocked by the sight of a boy and a girl in parkas helping each other climb down the back of the beast.

“Did they just ride in on a griffon?” He heard Peach whisper.

“Those would be the ice climbers.” Meta Knight informed from beside them.

“Why are they called that?” Lucas questioned.

Luigi could practically hear the smirk in the knight's voice as he responded, “I'm sure you'll find out soon enough.” 

“Hi!” The girl said with a wave once she spotted them. She grabbed her brother's hand and dragged him over to the group. “I'm Nana, and this is my brother Popo.” Her brother muttered a shy hello beside her.

They then heard what sounded like a heard of grimm deep in the forest heading their way. Nana quickly pulled out a large mallet, and looked like she was about to run into the woods to face them but Ness grabbed her wrist and pulled her back.

“That's not our mission.” He told her.

“He's right,” Mario chimed in. “We were told to grab a gem and then head back, that's it.”

Nana's shoulders slumped, but she nodded in agreement. 

“So let's all grab a gem and get out of here.” Peach said as she quickly snatched the one nearest to her. The ice climbers inspected their options before choosing a light blue one and Popo stuffed it in his pocket.

“You doing alright?” Meta Knight quietly checked in on his partner. Luigi smiled kindly at him before nodding in response. The two then headed back toward the cliff, with Ness, Lucas and the ice climbers following closely behind. Peach went along with them before noticing that her partner wasn't joining them. She walked back down the hill where Mario stood looking fondly at his brother.

“What is it?” She asked.

“Nothing,” he responded. “I was just thinking that if I couldn't be Luigi's partner, Meta Knight is the next best thing.”

Peach smiled at him. “Between you and me,” she said. “I'm glad Meta Knight and Luigi are partners, that way I get to be with you.” 

Mario felt the heat rising into his cheeks, and he couldn't find the right words to say in response. So instead of speaking he grabbed the girl's hand and gave it a gentle squeeze before turning and heading back towards the group.


End file.
